Most Popular
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S. Korea, US clinch 2026-30 defense cost-sharing deal in pre-election push
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Military aircraft evacuating S. Koreans in Lebanon returns home
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Concerns raised over chronic labor shortage at state-run center for digital sex crime victims
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BTS-themed moon jar to be unveiled on Hangeul Day
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Market uncertain on Korea's October rate cut despite slowed inflation
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Special counsel bill to probe first lady scrapped
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Korean bands get their day in the sun, finally
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Baseball star Hwang Jae-gyun, T-ara's Jiyeon file for divorce mediation
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Korea reports 8.5% rise in suicide rate
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2 US B-1B bombers conducted joint drill with S. Korean Air Force on Oct. 1 Armed Force Day
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Celltrion clears the way for domestic sales of leukemia treatment biosimilar
South Korean biopharmaceutical company Celltrion has won an appeal case and successfully challenged the domestic patent of an original drug by Samsung Biogen, thereby clearing the way for sales of its up-and-coming biosimilar to treat autoimmune disorders, officials said Friday.The Patent Court of Korea on Thursday upheld a judgment by the Intellectual Property Tribunal, invalidating Samsung Biogen’s patent on Rituxan, an original drug used to treat chronic lymphocytic leukemia.The court decisio
Jan. 18, 2019
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[Eye Plus] An afternoon in a hanok
North European and classic American styles have prevailed among interior design fanatics in South Korea in recent years.But before the invasion of Western culture, it was mostly wooden furniture -- made from either maple or paulownia -- that was favored by aristocrats in the 18th and 19th centuries. The Korea Furniture Museum in Seongbuk-dong, northern Seoul, invites visitors to take a break -- and perhaps, travel back in time -- inside hanok, or traditional Korean houses, where more than 2,500
Jan. 17, 2019
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NPS to exercise shareholder rights over Korean Air, Hanjin KAL
South Korea’s state pension fund will actively exercise its rights as shareholder over the nation’s No. 1 air carrier Korean Air and its holding company Hanjin KAL Corp., the National Pension Service said Thursday.The decision is to mark the first of such case since the NPS introduced the stewardship code, a set of principles on trustee responsibility that allows the fund operator to intervene in the management of companies. (Yonhap)The fund management committee, the NPS' decision-making body, c
Jan. 17, 2019
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Naver updates translation service for Korean honorifics
South Korean internet giant Naver released an update to its online translation service that is capable of rendering English into honorific Korean, as foreign users have often found it difficult to replace English words with formal and polite Korean expressions. According to Naver on Thursday, users who update the company’s automated translation app, Papago, can receive translations in honorific Korean if they turn on the “honorific button” in the input box. Currently, the updated service is ava
Jan. 17, 2019
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‘Korean biopharma on brink of explosive global growth, only needs nudge’: KPBMA
The Korean biopharma industry can become one of Korea’s main economic growth engines, but only if the government helps shift its paradigm from domestic market to overseas, said Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association’s Chairman Won Hee-mok at a press briefing held Thursday.“(Korea’s) biopharma industry has so far duly served the social role of providing affordable drugs for the local market, but now is the time for the government to help the industry turn focus and advance
Jan. 17, 2019
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Oceans ministry to share marine technologies with local firms
South Korea's oceans ministry said Thursday it will share marine robotics technologies developed by state-run institutions with local companies to cut the costs of renting foreign machines.The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Korea Institute of Ocean Science & Technology said they have decided to share three different marine construction robot technologies with local companies. (Yonhap)By sharing the technology, the oceans ministry said local firms could save more than 10 billion won ($8
Jan. 17, 2019
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LG Chem joins global group for ethically sourced minerals
LG Chem Ltd., a major South Korean EV battery maker, said Thursday that along with other global firms, it plans to use blockchain technology to trace and validate ethically sourced minerals. In a bid to support human rights and environmental protection, as well as help infuse more transparency into global mineral supply chains, LG Chem, Ford Motor, Huayou Cobalt, IBM and RCS Global will begin with a pilot focused on cobalt and explore the creation of an open, industrywide blockchain platform th
Jan. 17, 2019
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Venture minister vows to expand support for startups
South Korea's venture minister said Thursday that the government is committed to expanding support for startups, which eventually would jack up employment.Venture investment in South Korea is estimated at 3.4 trillion won ($3.04 billion) last year, which marks a hike of over 40 percent from a year earlier, according to Minister of SMEs and Startups Hong Jong-haak.(Yonhap)"For this year, state-involved venture investment funds will be boosted, and the government will encourage private investors t
Jan. 17, 2019
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‘League of Legends’ Champions Korea spring 2019 opens
Biannual esports league “League of Legends” Champions Korea’s 2019 spring split season opened Wednesday, with SK Telecom T1 and Jin Air Green Wings going head-to-head in the first match at LoL Park in Jongno, Seoul.The 10 teams competing in this split, which will continue through March, are the Afreeca Freecs, Damwon Gaming, Gen.G, Griffin, Hanwha Life, Jin Air Green Wings, Kingzone DragonX, KT Rolster, Sandbox Gaming and SK Telecom T1.SK Telecom T1 and KT Rolster have garnered much attention, w
Jan. 16, 2019
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Kimchi exports continue to rise
Exports of kimchi have been rising steadily in recent years, reaching $97.5 million last year, up 20 percent from the previous year, data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs showed Wednesday.The ministry has been collecting kimchi export data since 2006 and said last year’s was the biggest annual jump in kimchi exports. The highest export figure for kimchi was $104 million in 2012. (Yonhap)The number of countries importing kimchi also increased, from 63 in 2017 to 68 last ye
Jan. 16, 2019
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Hyundai Motor’s Kona EV debuts on Singaporean carpooling market
Hyundai Motor said Wednesday that its Kona EV has debuted on the ride-hailing market in Singapore via carpooling service Grab. It is the first time an electric vehicle has been chosen for a carpooling service in Southeast Asia, according to the firm.Hyundai Motor said it has provided 20 Kona EVs for the launch of the electric vehicle carpooling service. By year-end, up to 200 Kona EVs will be added for Grab drivers, according to the firm. Established in 2012, Grab has been called the Uber of Sou
Jan. 16, 2019
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Health supplement market surpasses W4.3tr on e-commerce boom
The health supplement market grew 20 percent over the past three years to reach 4.3 trillion won ($3.8 million) in 2018 as compared with 3.5 trillion won in 2016, the Korea Health Supplements Association said, crediting the growth spurt to e-commerce channels.Tablets and pouch-type health drinks such as ginseng extract led the sales, according to a KHSA representative. The rapid growth of the market for health supplements was largely the result of strong purchases through online shopping platfor
Jan. 16, 2019
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Hotel Shilla to open first overseas hotel in Danang
Hotel Shilla said Tuesday that it is opening its first overseas hotel in Danang, Vietnam, this year, aiming to become a global hotel chain. It will open more hotels in 10 further overseas locations, including in the US and China. Under its new brand Shilla Monogram, the hotel in Danang will be an upscale hotel comprised of a beach restaurant, lobby bar and 300 guest rooms across nine buildings. Shilla Monogram Vietnam Danang (Hotel Shilla)The company said its overseas hotels will be operated ba
Jan. 15, 2019
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‘Gaming is not a disease’: industry demands measures to foster games market upon Nexon rumor
Nexon is up for sale because of the dismal future of the Korean games industry, experts argued Monday in a discussion at the National Assembly about the potential sale of one of the country’s biggest game companies.Earlier this month, speculation spread that NXC CEO Kim Jung-ju had decided to put on the market 98.64 percent of shares in NXC, Nexon’s biggest shareholder. Kim later said he was considering various ways to make the firm more globally competitive.While Kim has neither confirmed nor d
Jan. 15, 2019
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Hanjin Heavy's overseas affiliate gets nod for rehabilitation scheme
Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Co., a midsized South Korean shipbuilder, said Tuesday that its Philippine affiliate has received approval for a rehabilitation scheme.In a regulatory filing, the shipbuilder said a Philippine court had okayed HHIC-Phil Inc.'s insolvency scheme earlier this week. (Yonhap)Early this month, HHIC-Phil, which operates the Subic yard, filed for an insolvency scheme in the archipelago country.Hanjin Heavy and its affiliate have been suffering from a drop in new o
Jan. 15, 2019
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Sales of brewed coffee at convenience stores on the rise
Sales of brewed coffee at local convenience stores have increased as more South Koreans seek cost effective drinks in the face of rising consumer prices, industry data showed Tuesday.BGF Retail Co., the operator of South Korea's largest convenience store chain, CU, said revenues from brewed coffee at its outlets jumped 42.9 percent in 2018 from a year earlier. (Yonhap)Its brewed coffee is priced between 1,200 won ($1.07) and 2,200 won, less than half the average price at local coffee chains.Sale
Jan. 15, 2019
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Industry minister vows to expand ties with UAE in energy segment
South Korea's industry minister vowed to expand ties with the United Arab Emirates in the energy segment and seek new opportunities based on their cooperation in the Barakah nuclear plant project, the government said Tuesday.Sung Yun-mo returned home Monday from his four-day trip to the UAE as a follow-up of President Moon Jae-in's visit in March last year and to check progress in the two countries' cooperation in the energy industry, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said. (Yonhap)The
Jan. 15, 2019
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Global smartphone market to shrink further in 2019: TrendForce
The global smartphone market is expected to contract further in 2019 due to weaker demand and other unfavorable factors, a report said Tuesday.Global smartphone production is expected to reach 1.41 billion units this year, down 3.3 percent from the previous year, according to the report from TrendForce. (Yonhap)Replacement demand is likely to slacken this year due to a lack of devices with landmark functions, TrendForce said, adding global smartphone output could drop as much as 5 percent on-yea
Jan. 15, 2019
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South Korea’s wheeled excavators see high demand in China
South Korean heavy construction equipment makers such as Doosan Infracore and Hyundai Construction Equipment saw their sales of wheeled excavators rebound in China last year, following the recovery of the country’s construction market. According to China Construction Machinery Association data, Doosan Infracore sold 15,630 excavators last year, while Hyundai Construction Equipment sold 7,234. Doosan InfracoreEach of the firms recorded their highest number of sales in eight years.Last year, the
Jan. 14, 2019
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[Photo News] Stylish water purifier
STYLISH WATER PURIFIER -- Models pose with water purifier maker Kyowon Wells’ new product Wells The One during its launch event held in Seoul on Monday. As the first in the industry, Wells The One has separated the water faucet part from the water filter system for an easier placement of the device. For a three-year rental plan, it costs 38,900 won ($34.8) to 51,900 won per month depending on the color and model. (Kyowon)
Jan. 14, 2019